Azarenka sweeps into Qatar quarters

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Azarenka sweeps into Qatar quarters

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Victoria Azarenka beat Simona Halep 6-3, 6-1 to storm into Qatar Open quarter-finals.

17 February,2012 04:36 am

World number one Victoria Azarenka swept into the quarter-finals of the Qatar Open with a swift demolition of Romanian Simona Halep on Thursday as Lucie Safarova claimed another top scalp.Belarusian Azarenka, the Australian Open champion, won 10 games in a row on the way to beating the 63rd-ranked Halep 6-3, 6-1, while Safarova, who had knocked out the second seed Caroline Wozniacki on Wednesday, sent former US and French Open champion and 14th seed Svetlana Kuznetsova packing with a 7-6 (8/6), 6-3 victory.Kuznetsova was the 12th of the 16 seeds in the 64-player draw to crash out of the event over the first four days.I kept my composure, said Azarenka, who will now meet Belgian Yanina Wickmayer in the quarter-finals. Wickmayer defeated Kazakhstans Ksenia Pervak 6-4, 6-0.Polands Agnieszka Radwanska fought back from a break down to advance to the last eight with a 7-5, 6-1 win over the USAs Varvara Lepchenko.Radwanska, the world number six and fourth seed in Qatar, was too strong for the Uzbek-born Lepchenko who is yet to win a WTA title after turning pro as a 15-year-old way back in 2001.Meanwhile, Australian third seed Samantha Stosur ousted the Czech Republics Petra Cetkovska 6-3, 6-2, but Israeli Shahar Peers quest for a first title in the Middle East ended prematurely.Peer, whose participation in events in the Gulf has often generated a furore, was beaten 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 by the USAs Christina McHale.